Fertiliser imports from Russia “are growing” in 2024, with urea and urea-ammonium nitrate hitting a share of 30% of the total, according to research carried out by the European Commission.
An analysis of the fertiliser market at EU level by the Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development (DG AGRI) found that “Russia appears to be the most competitive supplier of nitrogen fertilisers in terms of price”.
This has led members of the EU Fertilisers Market Observatory, an expert group established by the commission, to warn that “the dependency on Russia seems to be increasing” and “that there are growing imports of urea from Belarus, +3% compared to 2023”.
Latest published minutes from an observatory meeting highlight that its members have expressed concern on “the EU strategic autonomy and considered the impact of a sudden stop of the RU and BY nitrogen supplies on the industry and farmers should be assessed, in particular on prices”.
According to the expert group urea is “gaining more popularity compared to previous years and currently represents 70% of the overall N supplies”.
Members of the expert group believe that the shift in farmers preference towards urea is due to the lower price and “perhaps also the efficient absorption by soil and plants when using foliar application”.
Fertiliser market
The analysis of the EU fertiliser market by DG AGRI also highlighted that fertiliser prices have “been stable for the past year, with a slight decrease for nitrogen (N), potash (K) and a
slight increase for phosphorous (P) .
“Prices are however still higher than in 2019/20 for all nutrients; for phosphates (+77%) and nitrogen fertilisers (+46%) and to a lesser extent for potash (+23%).
“Although the signs are mostly positive than in previous meetings, affordability of fertilisers for farmers still is a concern due to lower crops prices,” it also stated.
According to farmers’ representatives on the EU Fertilisers Market Observatory, bad crop yields across Europe in 2024 may cause cash flow issues that could affect future fertiliser purchases next spring (for the late applications of harvest 2025) and later (for the harvest 2026).
Members of the expert group highlighed that “this will probably result in a drop of P and K fertilisation again in 2025, after the recovery in 2024”.